Worthwhile
by Firehearted Shinobi
Summary: Running into Erza on the streets after the first day of the grand magic tournaments Jellal is forced to admit that he probably underestimated her keen insight of him.


Jellal trudged down Crocas's Blossoming streets heavily. He knew he should head back to the room that he, or rather Mystogan, had been assigned but right now he just wanted to clear his head from the frustration he was feeling because of the humiliating failure his efforts in the match against Jura had been. He was well aware that the attack he had been about to use could very well have revealed his identity in the magic tournament but the bitter sting of humiliation made rational thought irritating and burdensome. He was hoping that he'd run into Ultear and Meredy somewhere in the city so that he could at least vent his frustration out on them and tell them off for stealing the match from him but the streets were quickly emptying and he saw no sign of his comrades anywhere. Exceptionally during the duration of the Magic tournament the whole city was subjected to a curfew which meant that the streets were already oddly desolate given the fact that the sun had only just begun to set in Fiore's capital.

In a last attempt to see if he could run into Ultear and Meredy he decided to take a detour to get back to his team's room that would take him farther away from the arena and therefore most crowds but he was soon once again absorbed in recollections of his match and how for a moment he had caught a glint of recognition in Jura's eye. He was pulled out of his thoughts when he felt a brief touch on his shoulder meant to catch his attention. He turned around and was startled when he came face to face with Erza. She was still wearing her team uniform so he guessed that she had not yet stopped by her room, although with Erza it could just as well be that she had simply grown fond of the outfit. In any case, where as he was slowly suffocating to death in Mystogan's customary attire Erza's uniform was quite revealing, and quite distracting. He had faced her in plenty of other revealing outfits in the past and he didn't recall having this much trouble maintaining appropriate eye contact with her. Even earlier that same day when he had walked into the arena and had been face to face with her as she interrogated him he had not had this trouble. He guessed that it was the simple fact that he had not had the opportunity to prepare himself for the proximity. The much less hostile way she was looking at him also brought to mind one of their previous encounters.

"What are you doing in this part of the city, Erza?" he asked. She parted her lips to speak and he remembered that he had caught himself staring at them more often than he realized when they had still been teenagers together and they would face each other during hostile encounters.

"Everyone's feeling a bit let down by this first day." She explained. "I thought it would be best to clear my head before going back and trying to cheer them up." she finished.

"Oh." his thoughts immediately spiraled down into more depressing memories of his humiliatingly stupid loss. "I'm sorry." Erza smiled slightly.

"It was Meredy's sensor link magic, wasn't it?" she asked. Jellal gaped for a moment, stunned that she could have come to that conclusion so easily but a smile made it's way onto his face. He honestly wouldn't expect any less from her.

"Your battle perception never ceases to amaze me, Erza." It truly was an admirable trait. Something that never ceased to amaze him.

"I do pride myself on my perception, both on and off the battle field." Jellal bristled and she smirked. Before he could confront her she sobered slightly. "It's very impressive though, that magic. I wish I could have seen that last spell." Jellal could feel the beginning of a very proud smile forming on his face. He was about to speak up when two hooded figures appeared seemingly out of thin air behind Erza.

"Don't encourage him, Erza. His ego is already big enough as it is." the taller of the hooded figures drawled, exasperation evident in her voice. Jellal glared knowing that Ultear was probably glaring right back. "What were you thinking, Jellal!" she hissed.

"I was trying to win some points for Fairy Tail out there." he growled back. "Now not only did I not win any points for Fairy Tail at all but my dignity was also left to die an agonizingly brutal death out there!" he finished.

"What dignity?" Ultear asked, tilting her head to reveal that evil grin she only ever wore when she was trying hard to exasperate him, the twitch of Erza's lip at that comment was not lost on him and his mood plummeted even further. His glare became even sharper as he alternated between Ultear and Meredy, just for good measure. Erza stood off to the side, apparently amused by the sight of these three figures who were obviously glaring at each other despite their faces being almost completely covered.

"Well, although the guild does come first, I must admit that I'm slightly relieved that the B team hasn't got a lead on us." Erza admitted. The three members of Crime Sorciere turned towards her in disbelief.

"I- what?" Ultear asked not quite sure if she had misheard or whether she had misunderstood Erza's reasoning.

"I refuse to be the B team's slave for a day." Erza began, a distant look claiming her eyes as she seemed to let different scenarios play before her eyes. "Who knows what they've all got up their sleeve." A wide grin spread on Ultear's face upon hearing this.

"So you're competing in a punishment game ?" she chuckled and it was accompanied by Meredy's wicked giggles. "Well that sure makes things more interesting." Jellal sent them both a dirty look. Six years roaming the kingdom with Ultear and Meredy had made him well aware of their sick minds. He knew what was going through their heads.

"Don't start." he warned. Ultear turned on him once again, she had remembered that she was supposed to be scolding him and turned her attention to him once again.

"Honestly Jellal, you don't have to be such a show off." she continued and suddenly he felt that the heavy layers he was wearing were warmer than they had been mere seconds before. Ultear continued scolding and threatening him with Meredy backing her up every now and then. The words "show off" came up a few more times but upon realizing that he wasn't really listening to a word they were saying Ultear reverted to dirtier tactics. "Tell him Erza!" All attention turned to the redhead that had patiently watched as the three mages from crime sorciere argued. She smiled and there was a playful shine in her eyes.

"Oh, I don't know." She began, she kept smiling knowingly."For all we know his fiancée could have been somewhere in that stadium, cheering him on. You can't blame him for trying to look good in front of her." she gave a carefree laugh. It was accompanied by Meredy's teasing giggles and a low chuckle from Ultear, leaving Jellal alone feeling like the butt of the women's unspoken joke. He huffed and crossed his arms as he waited for Erza and his guildmates to stop laughing but even he found it hard to keep a smile from his face. He was once again grateful for Mystogan's heavy clothes that kept his expression hidden from the three women in front of him.

"Well," Erza began as soon as the laughter had somewhat died down. "I really should get back and see if I can cheer the others up." Erza's smile was still fixed to her face as she bid the three members of Crime Sorciere goodbye before turning around and walking down the now dark streets of Crocas.

Jellal watched her go silently until she slipped out of sight.

"She knows, doesn't she?" he asked. Ultear and Meredy gave nods.

"She's know from the beginning, hasn't she?" Nods.

"She isn't going to make this easy on me, is she?" They shook their heads and he grinned. After all, it just wouldn't be like Erza to make it easy on him after he had deliberately lied to her face. They could have fun with this and wait. After all, he could be a very patient man when it came to certain things and this was something he truly considered worthwhile.

_AN:/ I actually wrote this a few months ago (right after the chapter where Jellal faces Jura came out) and forgot about it, but now seems as good a time as any to post it. I really love the sheer amount of possibilities that Crime Sorciere offers, but if I recall correctly I wrote this while feeling Gerza deprived so that explains this story. I'll try and write something more Crime Sorciere centric one of these days..._


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